When it comes to training Muay Thai, a good pair of gloves is an absolute must.
Whether you train Muay Thai for MMA or the boxing ring, your Muay Thai gloves will become your best friends, offering protection to your hands during training, sparring, and competition.
Two of the best Muay Thai gloves on the market are the Fairtex BGV1 and the Twins Special.
In this MMAWhisperer gear comparison, we look at the following:
- Durability, comfort, and style of each Muay Thai glove model
- Price comparison of each glove
- How to choose the best Muay Thai gloves for your needs
- Final opinion on Fairtex BGV1 vs Twins Special
By the time you finish reading, you’ll be ready to select between these two amazing sets of Muay Thai gloves.
Let’s do this!
Table of Contents
- Fairtex BGV1 Muay Thai Gloves Overview
- Twins Special Muay Thai Gloves Overview
- More Muay Thai Gloves You Might Like
- Durability Of Fairtex BGV1 And Twins Special
- Style Differences Between Fairtex BGV1 And Twins Special
- Pricing of Fairtex BGV1 vs Twins Special
- Which Fits Better, BGV1 Or Twins Special?
- What Size Fairtex Gloves Should I Get?
- What Size Twins Special Should I Get?
- Which One Is Better, Fairtex BGV1 or Twins Special
- How To Choose Gloves For Muay Thai
Fairtex BGV1 Muay Thai Gloves Overview
Once you get a taste for blood, there’s no going back.
You will need high-quality equipment if you love the fight game, whether you want to become a UFC fighter or are just training to protect yourself if you need to win a street fight.
Fairtex is one of the best brands in Muay Thai Boxing and they produce all their products in Thailand. All of their products are hand made and famous for high quality.
The Fairtex BGV1 Muay Thai gloves are one of the most popular Fairtex products. They are widely used not only for Muay Thai but also for Boxing.
Mainly they are handy for pad and bag work, and some people use them for sparring, too.
Some fighters say that BGV1 is not helpful for sparring sessions because of dense padding, which makes getting hit in the face more unpleasant, and also can be dangerous.
There are two versions of the Fairtex BGV1, one breathable, which has a mesh palm, and another one which is entirely sewn by leather.
These are some of the best Muay Thai gloves in terms of quality. They are so sturdy and smooth simultaneously, creating solid material quality.
Fairtext Bgv1 Have A Breathable Mesh Version And Full-Leather Version
Fairtex BGV1 gloves have an outstanding classic design, which is very comfortable for athletes.
Almost every color you can imagine is available, which creates excellent variety for customers.
Twins Special Muay Thai Gloves Overview
The Twins Special Muay Thai gloves are among the sturdiest Thai Boxing gloves on the market.
Twins is famous for not only the quality but the unique branding.
They have many different styles, and you will indeed find the one that matches your needs.
These gloves are built for everything. The padding is so great on the front and back sides of the gloves.
The padding behind the fist is so good that it is easier to block elbows, kicks, and punches, and also it’s so flexible that it is very comfortable while Thai clinch, and also is so good to catch kicks.
The Flexibility of Twins Special Gloves Aids In Catching Kicks
This glove is also widely used in Boxing. Still, it is a Thai Boxing glove, which means its wrist should be more flexible.
Because of it, it’s less supportive, and it can be dangerous for Boxing when you are throwing heavy overhand punches.
It is excellent to pair gloves for the beginner who does not know what kind of gloves they need.
Experienced fighters state that Twins Special Muay Thai gloves are the ideal pair of gloves for beginners because these gloves can be used for sparring, pad work, or bag work.
More Muay Thai Gloves You Might Like
Durability Of Fairtex BGV1 And Twins Special
These are the two brands that increase the competitive level of the market. Both brands offer superior quality, with the most fabulous leather and stitches.
It is impossible to name the winner between these gloves in terms of durability.
To name the exact winner, we would need some scientific observation under the same circumstances, which is impossible.
It depends on how often you are using these gloves.
Initially, these gloves were created for Thai Boxing, where fighters are trained two times a day and six times per week.
Under hot climates, these gloves are said to be used between 3 to 8 months, but most people have these gloves for years for several reasons.
Beginners with only one pair of gloves do not work out 12 times per week, and they are working out three maximum 5 times per week, this lighter use will extend the glove’s life span.
Professional Fighters Always Own More Than One Set of Gloves
And the professionals, who train 10+ times a week, do not have a single pair of gloves. Depending on their preferences, they have different pairs of gloves for pad work, sparring, and bag work.
Style Differences Between Fairtex BGV1 And Twins Special
They are perfect substitutes for each other.
Both brands are mainly designed to use in Thai Boxing. People also use them in Boxing, but perfect boxing gloves require different padding.
As we already mentioned, the padding of these gloves is created for kickboxing or Thai Boxing.
In Boxing, only punches are legal, while, in Thai boxing, kicks, elbows, knees, and spinning kicks are also legal.
Thai Boxing gloves require more padding on the back side of the fist to block kicks and elbows.
Boxing gloves require more padding on the front side and more protection around the wist.
These gloves do not have good enough protection around the wrist for Boxing.
In Thai Boxing, the clinch plays a big role, and mobility is more necessary than wrist protection. That’s why Thai Boxing gloves are not suitable enough for Boxing even though they are of the highest quality.
Thai Boxing Gloves Require More Mobility Compared To Standard Boxing Gloves
Talking about Muay Thai, both brands are great for not only training but also for competitions. Still, Twins might be the better pair for the beginner since they can be used for anything (Pad Work, Bag Work, Sparring).
Still, professional fighters often choose gloves independently according to taste or other subjective factors because these brands are great substitutes.
Pricing of Fairtex BGV1 vs Twins Special
Both products’ prices are in the same range, which is logical since these are the brands creating the market and leading the field and should have the same price range.
Still, waiting for the sales will be an amazing idea for you.
Online you can usually find Fairtex BGV1 Muay Thai Gloves for less than a few hundred dollars.
If you visit the sports magazine in Thailand, you see that the Fairtex complex is on another level. Because of that, you can expect substantial quality.
Twins Special Muay Thai Gloves are typically around the same price as the Fairtex option. In my opinion, price difference is not a significant factor when picking between both options.
read about the best Muay thai gloves
Which Fits Better, BGV1 Or Twins Special?
Twins Special is a bit bigger than BGV1. While wearing the same size as the gloves, there will be more places inside the gloves in Twins Specia, which can be harmful.
In the beginning, both gloves will feel very comfortable, but after several months of hard training, they will lose their fitting.
Being uncomfortable in the gloves might cause different injuries, so it is essential to be careful.
Relatively more oversized gloves mean having lots of space in the gloves and less support to the wrist.
Punches can cause terrible injuries to knuckles, hands, and wrists, such as the Boxer’s fracture, which you can prevent with tight gloves and wrist support. However, having too tight gloves will stop blood circulation in your hands, and your hands will numb.
Each individual has a different shape of hands, and it can be hard to name the better brand because one of the brands might offer a unique size of gloves, which could be very useful for someone. Still, averagely, BGV1 is said to be better in the fitting.
What Size Fairtex Gloves Should I Get?
While buying gloves for yourself, you have to consider several factors like your weight, fighting style, and preferences.
Lower size gloves will be suitable for pad and bag work.
Smaller size means lower weight, and you can land combinations faster and harder with lighter gloves.
However, you will need heavier gloves with more padding during the sparring sessions. More padding will increase the level of protection for your sparring partner.
As usual, 16 OZ is the most common size for sparring gloves, but heavyweights also use 18 OZ for additional security. If you are less than 140 lbs (63 KG), you also can use 14 OZ for sparrings because 16 might be too heavy for your body weight.
Heavier Gloves Are More Suitable for Sparring
If you can afford only one pair of gloves, I recommend buying 16 OZ because it is not very heavy for even lighter weights and can be used for pad and bag work.
The protection level of this size is also good enough for any weight category.
What Size Twins Special Should I Get?
The Idea behind the sizes is the same for each glove brand. However, each brand and even each glove might be different from each other.
As mentioned before, 16 OZ is the best size in case of buying only one pair of gloves.
Which One Is Better, Fairtex BGV1 or Twins Special
In terms of quality and price, it will be pretty hard to differentiate these products.
Still, if you want to buy only one pair of gloves for sparring, bag, and pad working, I would purchase Twins Special for several personal reasons.
I don’t love hard sparring, and I believe that pad/bag working should require more speed and less power.
If I put all my strength into those punches, the wrist injury probability would increase, but since I focus on technique and speed, Twins Special would be better for any work inside the gym.
Regardless, boxing and Muay Thai are both very important arts for MMA, so be sure to invest in your gloves carefully.
This does not mean that I would say no to Fairtex BGV1, but I prefer to take care of my sparring partners and choose the gloves that make my punches less unpleasant for them when all other things are equal in terms of quality.
How To Choose Gloves For Muay Thai
Now that you have a rundown on the Fairtex BGV1 vs. Twins Special gloves, let’s discuss some general buying principles for Muay Thai gloves.
Good Muay Thai gloves are one of those pieces of equipment you need to choose carefully because having “bad” gloves can cause many injuries.
There are different categories of gloves for various purposes. Fighters also choose gloves differently for pad work, bag work, and sparring sessions.
Generally, people use smaller size gloves for pad and bag work but bigger ones for sparring sessions.
Bigger sizes mean more padding inside the gloves, bringing more protection and slowing down the punch’s speed to protect your partner and yourself.
If your glove is smaller, your hands will get tired quickly, but having space inside the gloves will injure your wrist and even break it.
Good training and sparring gloves are one of the most important pieces of gear you need for Muay Thai and MMA, so it’s vital to invest in great gloves ahead of time – your hands will thank you later!
